I see the future, I see the fraud
Staring into space off the ground
A knife will extort confessions
And a black rose will heal obsessions
After what has felt like eons, Italian darkwave outfit Ash Code will finally grace the stage stateside once more! Having recently collaborated with Ellen Allien for a techno remix collaboration, Ash Code now teases our impatient ears with the eerie single, “Tear You Down,” a by-product of last summer’s relentless ennui, according to Claudia Nottebella.
“The stark simplicity of the lyrics, intricately woven into the imagery, was born from the depths of a lucid dream,” she says. And what a dream! The lyrics to Tear You Down foretell a potent premonition. With eyes cast upwards, lost in vastness, there’s an undercurrent of coercion, symbolized by a knife demanding truths. Threats linger, hinting at imminent collapse. Yet, healing still comes…in the form of a midnight-hued rose, offering solace from obsession. These words peer keenly into hidden recesses of fear and evasion, likened to a shattered mirror devoid of its purpose—reflecting nothing, feeling nothing…a poetic commentary on vulnerability, the struggle with inner demons, and the quest for redemption.
In the esoteric film accompaniment to the song, one spies shades of the 1980s in its stylings. Stitched together are visions faintly sinister and surreal —candelabras that might’ve once known better days, scenes of a raging tide from a bird’s eye, and a touch of the divine and the mystical with smoky quartz crystals and rosaries. The entire affair is nothing short of an alchemical transformation of vigour, pushed forward by Ash Code’s signature ominous darkwave atmosphere.
“For the first time in years, we decided to be free from external dependencies for the creation of the video and making everything by ourselves,” says Alessandro Belluccio. “I endeavoured to translate the emotions invoked by the song into a visual narrative. The video encapsulates a somber essence, and we like the outcome very much. While the concept remains elegantly simple, due to my inexperience, the post-production phase demanded a lot of time.”
Watch the video for “Tear You Down” below:
Since 2014, Ash Code has been shaking up the darkwave scene, marrying unlikely genres to birth a sound that are defiantly their own. Their tunes are fueled by an immediacy, with roaring rhythms and vocals as gritty as an old film noir, yet harmonized with lyrical synths and poetic verses.
Catch Ash Code below at a city near you!
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